A good massage therapist is one who can effectively use massage techniques to relieve the stress, tension, and other problems that you have. Deciding when to have a massage is easy the hard part is choosing a therapist who can deliver your needs.

The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork, or NCBTMB, currently administers two certification exams which are recognized by 37 states. In addition to passing one of these tests, it is necessary for the certified massage therapist to have at least 500 hours of coursework. The coursework covers a variety of topics and information such as anatomy, physiology, ethics, pathology and more.